Tregui (V/R), Dec 4, GNA - The Minister of Food and Agriculture, Major Courage Quashigah (rtd) has called on the people of Shime Electoral Area in the Keta District of the Volta Region to watch the times and seasons critically before staking their votes for their preferred candidates in Election 2004.

He made the call when he addressed a durbar of chiefs and people of the Shime Electoral area at Tregui as part of his campaign tour of the Southern Sector of the Region.

The Minister emphasised that the time had come for the people to be wary of the "stomach politicians" of the past who had amassed wealth for themselves and families at the expense of the unsuspecting electorate, who had elected them into power.

Major Quashigah said that the Southern Volta was full of natural endowments such as the lagoon and the vast sea that gave the people salt and fish in large quantities, but the right people with the entrepreneurial skills to exploit these potentials were virtually absent.

He urged the people to vote for the New Patriotic Party (NPP) Parliamentary Candidate, Mr Edward Kofi Ahiabor, a Soil Scientist and Irrigation Expert and had identified himself with the local people to help them to improve upon their social and economic status.

The NPP Parliamentary Candidate for the Anlo Constituency, Mr Ahiabor, expressed regret that the two decades of Provisional National Defence Counmcil and National Democratic Congress (NDC) governments had brought untold misery and suffering to the people of Shime because they had been neglected and forgotten.

He said since the NPP came into power four years ago the inhuman conditions had been reversed and the people had seen a considerable change and breathed a great sigh of relief under the positive change and urged them to return the Government to power in Election 2004. As a soil scientist and irrigation expert, Mr Ahiabor promised to start irrigation farming in the area to boost sugarcane, vegetables and crop farming on a large commercial scale to bring sufficient income to the farmers.

The Chairman of the Shime Area Council, Mr John Atatsi in his welcoming address praised the Government for being sensitive to the plight of the rural dwellers by providing them with their basic necessities, particularly school infrastructure, markets, toilets facilities and health centres.

Mr Atatsi pledged the support and loyalty of the people to vote massively to return the Government to power.

A brand new tractor, worth over 160 million cedis was donated to the farming communities of the Shime area, made up of seven electoral areas, to boost production of the vegetables and other cash crops in commercial quantities.